Many Seek Spanish Citizenship Offered to Sephardic Jews

The
Spanish government has been flooded with thousands of inquiries about
legislation it approved last month that will grant dual citizenship to
descendants of Sephardic Jews expelled from Spain more than 500 years ago, the country’s justice minister said on Wednesday.

The
minister, Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón, who considers the legislation his
most important achievement, said in an interview at The New York Times
that he anticipated that more than 150,000 people, scattered in the
Sephardic Jewish diaspora, would seek Spanish citizenship under the
measure, aimed at righting what the government has called a grievous
error. The bill is expected to receive unanimous parliamentary approval.

“This
law is a real historic reparation of, I dare say, the biggest mistake
in Spanish history,” Mr. Gallardón said. He was visiting New York at the
invitation of Jewish groups to explain the legislation, which has
generated intense interest....